Sean Connery, original James Bond, dies at 90

Legendary actor Sir Sean Connery has passed away at the age of 90.

The news of the Scottish star's demise was communicated by his family, according to a report in bbc.com. No official reason has been shared for the death yet.

Connery, who is widely recalled as the original James Bond on Hollywood screen, had an active career as an actor spanning nearly five decades.

He shot to global superstardom as Bond in 1962, with the first film of the 007 series, "Dr. No", and then went on to work in "From Russia with Love" (1963), "Goldfinger" (1964), "Thunderball" (1965), "You Only Live Twice" (1967), "Diamonds Are Forever" (1971) and "Never Say Never Again" (1983).

American Film Institute has voted James Bond as portrayed by Connery as the third-greatest hero in cinema history.

Although his avatar as the stylish superspy often defines Connery, he carved a successful Hollywood career with roles in films such as "The Name Of The Rose" (1986), "The Untouchables" (1987), "Indiana Jones And The Last Crusade" (1989), "The Hunt For Red October" (1990), "The Russia House" (1990), "Rising Sun" (1993), "Dragonheart" (1996), "The Rock" (1996), "Entrapment" (1998), "Finding Forester" (2000), and "The League Of Extraordinary Gentlemen" (2003), among many others.

For his roles as Jimmy Malone in Brian De Palma's "The Untouchables", Connery won an Oscar as Best Supporting Actor. He also won two Bafta awards and three Golden Globes in his career.

Connery was knighted by the Queen at Holyrood Palace in 2000.

Here is a list of films that you can binge-watch to celebrate an outstanding career. We will start with the Bond films of course, before looking at his other works.

<strong>Dr. No</strong>
The 1962 spy thriller is the first film in the James Bond series. Connery looked suave in a tuxedo, flashing a gun and wooing the ladies. The film sees James Bond being sent to Jamaica to investigate the disappearance of a fellow British agent. This leads him to the underground base of Dr. No, who is plotting to disrupt an early American space launch from Cape Canaveral with a radio beam weapon.

<strong>From Russia With Love</strong>
Back as Bond in 1963, Connery's character searches a Lektor cryptographic device that has the potential to wreak havoc in the world. The film highlights the dreaded secret crime organisation SPECTRE, which will go on to be Bond's nemesis for the rest of the franchise.

<strong>Goldfinger</strong>
The focus is on gold smuggling, with an adventure that Bond embarks on to bust the powerful businessman Auric Goldfinger in this 1964 film. As he delves deeper into Goldfinger's activities, he uncovers a plan to attack Fort Knox's gold reserves.

<strong>Thunderball</strong>
In the 1965 film, a SPECTRE agent steals two atomic bombs from a NATO plane. Bond is assigned a mission to put a stop to the plans of the criminal organisation to wreak havoc.

<strong>You Only Live Twice</strong>
In the 1967 film, an American space capsule is supposedly swallowed by a Russian spaceship. However, James Bond discovers that SPECTRE is behind the theft and sets out to find out their motive.

<strong>Diamonds Are Forever</strong>
Connery had taken a break from the franchise, but returned with the 1971 release. This story is woven around a diamond smuggling conspiracy. It was Connery's sixth and final film in the official Bond franchise, though he would return in the 1983 release, "Never Say Never Again", for a final run as the MI6 agent.

Beyond the Bond films, Connery had other hits that will stay evergreen.

<strong>The Untouchables</strong>
Connery won the Academy Award as Best Supporting Actor for his role of the cop Jim Malone. Brian De Palma's 1987 crime drama also starred Kevin Costner, Charles Martin Smith, Andy Garcia and Robert De Niro.

<strong>Marnie</strong>
The 1964 psychological thriller film by Alfred Hitchcock had Connery playing Mark Rutland, wealthy widower who owns a publishing company in Philadelphia. The film is among Hitchcock's greatest works as a maker of unconventional yet entertaining thrillers.

<strong>The Man Who Would Be King</strong>
The 1975 adventure film starred Michael Caine and Christopher Plummer along with Connery, who essayed the role of Danny Dravot, an ex-sergeant of the British Army.

<strong>The Hunt For Red October</strong>
The 1990 submarine spy-thriller revolved around CIA analyst Jack Ryan, who thinks Soviet nuclear submarine commander Captain Marko Ramius is planning to defect but only has a few hours to find him and the submarine. Connery was seen as Marko Ramius.

<strong>Indiana Jones And The Last Crusade</strong>
The film series is popular for its lead actor Harrison Ford, but in the 1989 action-adventure sequel one can't miss Connery, who played Ford's enigmatic on-screen father. The film follows Indiana Jones, an archaeologist, who learns that his father, Dr Henry Jones, has disappeared while looking for the Holy Grail.

<strong>Entrapment</strong>
The film is an all-time favourite of heist movie lovers and has Connery pairing up with the much-younger Catherine Zeta-Jones. Released in 1999, the film was about Virginia (Zeta-Jones), an insurance agent, who takes help of MacDougal (Connery), a skilled thief who steals exquisite pieces of art. Together, they plan to steal expensive artefact.

<em>(IANS)</em>

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